Arkansas River Valley residents are at risk of becoming victims of identity theft — through caller ID spoofing.

Caller ID spoofing is a type of fraud in which the calling party falsifies caller ID information to disguise its identity, and it recently occurred to Russellville resident Melinda Shaber.

“I am truly concerned for the elderly and kids because they can be taken in by this kind of scam,” Shaber said. “I just want people to be aware of this dangerous scam.”

Shaber said the caller ID spoof happened around 2 p.m. when she was preparing for work.

“The number on the caller ID was my own, and I knew there was no way I could be calling myself,” Shaber said.

She answered her phone and was greeted by a man who identified himself as a credit card representative. Because she did not have any credit cards with the company, Shaber asked to be put on the no-call list.

“He told me he could not do it without my date of birth,” Shaber said. “I knew that was wrong because I have worked in customer service.”

After being transferred to the supervisor, who also wanted her birth date, Shaber called Suddenlink Media, her phone service provider.

Shaber said Suddenlink Media referred her to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). An FCC representative reported that caller ID spoofs are occurring across the nation, not only in Arkansas or Russellville.

According to the FCC, identity thieves who use caller ID spoofing might ask for bank account information, Social Security number, date of birth and a mother’s maiden name. The thieves use the caller ID spoofing to make it appear like they are calling from a bank, credit card company or government agency.

The FCC suggested several tips to prevent identity theft through caller ID spoofing, including not giving out personal information through an incoming call. If a call is suspicious, find the phone number on an account statement, in the phonebook or on a company’s website and call to verify the information is needed.

To report a caller ID spoof, file a complaint at www.fcc.gov/complaints or call (888) CALL-FCC.